8th Continental Regiment / 2nd. New Hampshire Regiment

Frederick Mordaunt Bell was born in Dover, New Hampshire in 1749. He was the son of Meshach, Jr. and Mary (Mordaunt) Bell.

Upon the opening of hostilities with Great Britain, the provincial government of New Hampshire, called for the creation of regiments to defend New Hampshire and the other rebellious colonies.  New Hampshire men raised three regiments, along with several short-term militia companies.

Frederick Mordaunt Bell was commissioned as a First Lieutenant in the Second New Hampshire Regiment on May 23,  1775. Bell was promoted to Captain on January 1st, 1776 when the Continental Congress temporarily took possession of the regiment to fulfill the quota of able soldiers.  This is how the unit received its designation of the 8th Continental Regiment.

Captain Bell was re-commissioned in November 1776, once the reorganization of the Continental Army was complete. Now known as the Second New Hampshire Regiment for the duration of the war, the regiment fought in some of the most consequential campaigns in the American Revolution, including the failed invasion of Quebec, the Sullivan Campaign in New York, and finally, the Siege of Yorktown, Virginia.